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Switching guide

Fortinet alternatives: SASE platforms compared for 2026

Short answer

The highest-scoring alternatives to Fortinet on our weights are Cato Networks, Netskope and Palo Alto Networks. Fortinet scores 7.10 and ranks 3 of 6. A SASE migration usually runs site by site, so the right alternative depends on which criteria matter most to you.

By The Transit Desk · Best SASE Platforms · Published

Desk research from each vendor's own public pages.

Why do teams look beyond Fortinet?

  • DLP and remote browser isolation are not in the FortiSASE component list on the page we read.
  • Specific certifications for FortiSASE are not stated in the trust page text we read.
  • FortiAIGate is described as self-hosted rather than as part of the FortiSASE cloud service.

Which alternatives score highest?

  1. 1.

    Cato Networks

    Cato Networks total 8.70 / 10
    Cato Networks SASE ring: lists 8 of 8 components.8/88 of 8

    Cato SASE Platform: SD-WAN, SSE, ZTNA and AI security on one global cloud

    Scores higher than Fortinet on: converged architecture, global network, as the vendor states it, component coverage, vulnerability response transparency, published compliance certifications and AI security inside the platform.

    Fortinet scores higher on: deployment options.

    Pairing

  2. 2.

    Netskope

    Netskope total 8.00 / 10
    Netskope SASE ring: lists 8 of 8 components.8/88 of 8

    Netskope One: SSE, SD-WAN and AI security on the NewEdge network

    Scores higher than Fortinet on: global network, as the vendor states it, component coverage, published compliance certifications and AI security inside the platform.

    Fortinet scores higher on: unified management and policy, vulnerability response transparency and deployment options.

    Pairing

  3. 3.

    Palo Alto Networks

    Palo Alto Networks total 7.05 / 10
    Palo Alto Networks SASE ring: lists 8 of 8 components.8/88 of 8

    Prisma SASE: Prisma Access, Prisma SD-WAN, Prisma Browser and related products

    Scores higher than Fortinet on: component coverage, published compliance certifications and AI security inside the platform.

    Fortinet scores higher on: converged architecture, unified management and policy, vulnerability response transparency and deployment options.

    Pairing

  4. 4.

    Zscaler

    Zscaler total 6.00 / 10
    Zscaler SASE ring: lists 6 of 8 components.6/86 of 8

    Zero Trust Exchange: ZIA, ZPA, Zero Trust Branch and Zero Trust SD-WAN

    Scores higher than Fortinet on: AI security inside the platform.

    Fortinet scores higher on: converged architecture, global network, as the vendor states it, unified management and policy, vulnerability response transparency, published compliance certifications and deployment options.

    Pairing

  5. 5.

    Cisco

    Cisco total 5.30 / 10
    Cisco SASE ring: lists 4 of 8 components.4/84 of 8

    Cisco Secure Access (SSE) paired with Cisco SD-WAN or Cisco Meraki SD-WAN

    Scores higher than Fortinet on: published compliance certifications.

    Fortinet scores higher on: converged architecture, global network, as the vendor states it, component coverage, unified management and policy, vulnerability response transparency and deployment options.

    Pairing

When does staying with Fortinet make sense?

Staying with Fortinet makes sense if your estate runs FortiGate and Fortinet Secure SD-WAN today, if you need a sovereign deployment in your own data centers, or if one operating system across appliances and cloud matters more than a cloud-only service.

What should a migration plan cover?

Inventory the FortiGate and SD-WAN devices in scope and decide which sites move to the cloud service first. Map FortiOS policies to the target platform, confirm how the target handles the DLP and browser isolation needs that FortiSASE's component list does not name, and agree certification evidence before contract.

Frequently asked questions

What is the top-scoring alternative to Fortinet?

Cato Networks at 8.70 on our default weights. It scores higher than Fortinet on converged architecture, global network, as the vendor states it, component coverage, vulnerability response transparency, published compliance certifications and AI security inside the platform.

Which Fortinet alternatives list FedRAMP?

Netskope, Palo Alto Networks and Cisco, on the pages we read.

Which Fortinet alternatives list all eight SASE components?

Cato Networks, Netskope and Palo Alto Networks.

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